Tag Archives: Expanded LTE Network

If you own a smartphone but live in an American city that's not all that populous, it can get a little frustrating.

Even if you've got the latest in LTE-capable devices, like the iPhone 5 or Samsung Galaxy S III, your carrier may not even have an LTE network that covers your area yet. But patience pays off, as Sprint subscribers in over 11 small and medium-sized U.S> cities and counties are about to find out.

The carrier announced yesterday that it's expanding its 4G LTE service in a few new U.S. cities, listed below:

As 9 to 5 Mac notes, "the term 'cities' is a little stretched in this instance as each population is either near or well below the 50,000 mark," but we actually see that as a positive. Just because a smartphone owner doesn't live in a metropolis doesn't mean they're not interested in LTE.

And the fact that Sprint carries LTE-capable phones from the likes of Samsung, LG and HTC won't mean much to a possible subscriber whose area doesn't get LTE service.

In fact, writes 9 to 5 Mac, "Sprint offers the iPhone but does not carry the 4G LTE iPad partly due to its thin LTE spread, although it has steadily tried to thicken 4G LTE data coverage in recent months."

But the carrier has been trying to address that. Aside from the 11 newly added cities, Sprint expanded their LTE network this past fall to 100 U.S. cities. Meanwhile, as they continue to brng LTE to new markets, Sprint promises "3G customers in these areas, [...] can expect to see better coverage, improved network reliability and voice quality once the improvements come to their areas."